SESC Pompéia

Remarkable for its design, and because a modern master can be a woman too!

Samantha Earl

SESC Pompéia is a remarkable adaptive reuse project by one of Modernism’s best-known female architects, Lina Bo Bardi. Originally a drum factory, Bo Bardi transformed the structure in 1982 into a highly successful multi-purpose building by adding two concrete towers connected by diagonal walkways. She stripped the factory back to its original concrete and brick to show the structural tectonics, while also allowing the program to drive the design in a socially utopic vision that reflects Modernism’s highest ideals. The building continues to thrive to this day, fascinating lovers of modern architecture around the world.